FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a refrigerator with a home bar according to the related art, FIG. 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of a home bar area of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an opening/closing unit of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a view showing an unlocked state of a rotational latch of FIG. 3. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the refrigerator with the home bar according to the related art may include a main body 11 of the refrigerator having a cooling chamber therein, a refrigerator door coupled to the main body 11 of the refrigerator to open or close the cooling chamber, i.e., a freezing chamber door 13 and a refrigerating chamber door 15 which open or close the freezing chamber and the refrigerating chamber, respectively, and a so-called home bar which is a refreshment center installed on the refrigerating chamber door 15.
A dispenser 18 which allows a user to take out ice and/or water with the refrigerating chamber door 13 closed may be defined on a front surface of the freezing chamber door 13.
The refrigerating chamber door 15 may include the home bar 20 from which a user can take out drinks or the like without opening the refrigerating chamber door 15. The home bar 20, as shown in FIG. 2, may include a housing 21 mounted at a rear surface of the refrigerating chamber door 15 to form a certain storage space 22, and a home bar door 25 for selectively opening/closing an opening 17 of the storage space 22. Drinks or the like may be stored in the storage space 22.
The opening 17 is formed to be stepped inwardly such that it can gradually be narrower in width. The home bar door 25 has a stepped portion 26 protruded to correspond to the shape of the opening 17 to prevent leakage of cold air when the home bar door 25 is closed.
Rotational shafts 27 may be formed at both lower sides of the home bar door 25. Each rotational shaft 27 may include a torsion spring 28 which applies an elastic force toward a direction in which the home bar door 25 is open.
A locking device 31 may be installed at an upper end of the home bar door 25 to allow the home bar door 25 to be selectively open or closed. The locking device 31 may include a rotational latch 33 coupled to the home bar door 25 to rotate based on a central axis, and a locking portion 35 fixed to the opening 17 of the refrigerating chamber door 15 and engaged with the rotational latch 33 to prevent the home bar door 25 from being unexpectedly opened. The rotational latch 33 may be provided with a torsion spring (not shown) disposed therein such that it can return to the original position thereof by an elastic force of the torsion spring after the rotation.
A handle 29 may be formed at the home bar door 25 to be movable. The handle 29 may be connected to one end of a handle connector 37, the other end of the handle connector 37 being connected to the rotational latch 33. When the handle 29 is drawn, the rotational latch 33 rotates in a direction in which the handle 29 is pulled. Accordingly, the rotational latch 33 is unlocked from the locking portion 35, by which the home bar door 25 may rotate downwardly.
When the home bar door 25 is open, the rotational latch 33 may return to the original position thereof by the torsion spring disposed inside thereof. When the home bar door 25 is closed again, an end of the rotational latch 33 comes in contact with an end of the locking portion 35. Here, upon applying a force more to the home bar door 25, the rotational latch 33 rotates in a direction opposite to the direction in which the home bar door 25 is open. When the rotational latch 33 rotates to be moved into the hollow space of the locking portion 35, the rotational latch 33 may return to its original position by the elastic force of the torsion spring. Accordingly, the locking portion 35 may come in contact with the rotational latch 33 so as to avoid the home bar door 25 from rotating downwardly.
However, the related art refrigerator with the home bar may have the following problems.
A user must inconveniently draw out the handle 29 to open the home bar door 25 and push the home bar door 25 to close it.
The storage space 22 is formed inside the refrigerating chamber door 15. Accordingly, in order to take items out of the storage space 22 or put items in the storage space 22, the user must put his hand into the storage space 22 with the refrigerating chamber door 15 open, which results in the user's inconvenience.
As the locking portion 31 of the home bar door 25 continues to be used, the elastic force of the torsion spring of the rotational latch 33 decreases, and thereby the rotational latch 33 is not maintained in the completely locked state to the locking portion 35. As a result, the home bar door 25 and the opening 17 come apart from each other to cause a gap to increase between the home bar door 25 and the opening 17, thereby causing leakage of cold air.